And then ...

It was Butch's 79th birthday on June 9th. Leo and Keri treated us at the local Mexican restaurant and it was very good as always. It was a nice way to celebrate and catch up on family happenings. 

My eye exam was the day before and it went well. He told me my eyes were healthy and since losing my sight has always been the worst sense to loose in my mind that was reassuring news. We celebrated at Hickory Park, a well known and highly touted restaurant in Ames Iowa.

Wednesday was the day for me to get my driver's license renewed. I have been in arrears since May 6th because in Iowa you have 60 days after your birthday to get it renewed and due to Covid-19 and Butch's broken leg I was unable to get it done. It would not have helped to come back sooner as the Courthouse was closed anyway. Now it is being done by appointment and by how much in arrears you happen to be, Butch was told to get an extension on his. He will not be behind until August 9th so he can wait. So he has his extension.

And today my main appointment was my haircut. It had been one month and two days since Liz had given me my last Texas haircut. I miss that girl!! She is a good one. I also like my Marcia haircuts in Iowa.

Keri and I took our bikes and made our way to the bridge just to see it.

This afternoon we had a very bad news phone call. Bill Brooker called to tell us their son Mark Brooker was killed in a biking accident in Houston Texas. Mark was Bill and Jo's youngest son and had turned 52 just yesterday. That threw us for a loop. Every time I think of Mark I see him smiling.

So on that sad news I will close for today.

The days are zipping by

We have a busy week of appointments lined up. Eye exams, annual doctor visits, haircuts, driver license renewals, and perhaps one that has momentarily slipped my mind. And yes, we are social distancing and wearing masks as best we can throughout these endeavors.

Butch is getting along famously with his indoor cane and his outdoor cane, forgetting them more frequently than ever. We hope to get him back on his physical therapy soon and then it should progress even more. I am thinking by fall you might not be able to tell he has been majorly repaired from his broken femur. He is playing golf but so far he is using a golf cart. I am sure he will be back to walking the course, if not this summer, surely by next.

Gary had a near mishap with his RV on the way here from Missouri last Thursday. Luckily the guys were able to get parts and get it repaired. Here they are getting things put back together.

Pictured from left are Rich, Jason, Butch, and Gary

Gary replacing the wheel hub

Gary is here and when he isn't busy working on his RV or playing golf with his dad and brothers we have been having hot games of CrossCribb. I was fairly certain Gary would like the game. We were introduced to it last winter playing with Dave and Liz. 

 

• An exciting game of Strategy, Luck, and Double Cross!
• Lots of fun for the entire family.
• Objective: Mark 31 points by building higher total cribbage scoring hands before your opponents.
• Recommended for Ages 8+. 2-6 Players.

Gary is here

Our son Gary likes to bring his RV to our place in the Spring to get it ready for the season. We have two RV sites in our backyard with full hook-ups including Wifi. We did this intentionally when we bought this place because we have many RV friends and had hoped they would stop in their travels to see us and that has indeed happened.

We also had a storm last night with lots of lightning, rain and a little hail. Thank God it didn't last too long. There are a few branches down in the backyard. I haven't seen any damage from the hail yet. I think it was small stuff.

I had made meatloaf for us last night for supper and Gary mentioned that he likes to order meatloaf now and then when he eats out. I really like this particular recipe. It is nothing fancy and does remind me of my mom's recipe. The one she never wrote down.

Mom's Meatloaf Recipe

TOTAL TIME: Prep: 15 min. Bake: 1 hour + standing

MAKES: 6 servings

Ingredients

• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten

• 3/4 cup 2% milk

• 2/3 cup finely crushed saltines

• 1/2 cup chopped onion

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 teaspoon rubbed sage

• Dash pepper

• 1-1/2 pounds lean ground beef (90% lean)

• 
  

• 1 cup ketchup

• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar

• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, combine the first seven ingredients. Add beef; mix lightly but thoroughly. Shape into an 8x4-in. loaf in an ungreased 15x10x1-in. baking pan.

2. In a small bowl, combine remaining ingredients, stirring to dissolve sugar; remove 1/2 cup for sauce. Spread remaining mixture over meatloaf.

3. Bake 60-65 minutes or until a thermometer reads 160°. Let stand 10 minutes before slicing. Serve with reserved sauce. Yield: 6 servings.

Originally published as Mom's Meat Loaf in Taste of Home June/July 1997, p35

Costco here we come and there we go

Butch and I went to Costco in DesMoines yesterday. We were curious as to how it would compare to South Texas. Not as well I am sorry to say. Yes, masks are required at both and a lady told the woman at the entrance that she had forgotten her mask and they provided one for her. That was all good. But it was crowded in there. Too crowded for comfort in my opinion. And the checkout area was not run well at all! In Texas, they had monitors making sure everyone knew what was expected and assisting them with compliance as in distancing and getting your items lined up and ready. In DesMoines, it was far more chaotic. If you had wanted a product that was up close to the checkout area you might as well forget it. And if you planned to wait it out until it cleared out a bit you would have been waiting a long time. If we head that way again and we probably will sometime, I think I would try a different time of day. We were there about noon and left close to two.

This morning I decided to spruce up the front area a bit so I bought a few geraniums and petunias at Bomgaars. Not many really because I do not want to spend all my time watering them trying to save my investment. It turned hot the minute June arrived so I had worked up quite a sweat by the time I got them situated in their new homes.

Butch went to the golf course. It seems he played well and it is probably as good for him as therapy will be. We have appointments lined up to get the therapy going again. We tried to get our second Shingles shot but they are not doing any vaccines yet. They said to check again in a few weeks. 

My drivers license had expired but the courthouse is still closed. I did get an appointment for June 11th though. Butch's has not expired yet but will soon and they said to go online and request an extension. So we did. Lots of details to get taken care of.

Finally! Getting things done.

Yesterday was a momentous day. It didn't rain! I did several hours worth of outdoor work and Butch went to the golf course. Yes, that is a good thing. In fact, I began to worry about him because it was windy and I knew he would not have stayed out there that long by himself with that kind of wind. Well as it happened Jason joined him on the course. Butch had a cart and Jason walked so it was easy to maintain distance. 

Butch said as long as he took it easy and didn't press his luck it felt okay to play. He was tired when he came home but not so tired that he needed a nap.

And then Jason came into town to help me with a few things I couldn't or didn't want to handle on my own. We both had masks on and maintained our distance here too. One of the things I wanted help with was the "Bat House". I have an outdoor wall hanging of a sun/moon and it has hung beside the breezeway door for several years but last year a bat took up residence and we could tell because of the droppings underneath. Since it was at eye-level for us and right beside the door we took it down and hoped the bat would forget about it. I put it back when we returned and lo and behold it didn't take long for the bat to take up residence again. I do not mind having a bat on the property because they eat bugs but not that near the house so I had Jason move it to the shed. I am guessing our bat will find it soon enough.                                The new "Bat House" location

T

The old bat house location was above the cactus on the left. You can see the screw that it hung upon.

I have a cactus that Gary gave me for Mother's day several years ago. I think it was 2007 or 2008. It has been repotted several times and there are all kinds of babies. It is now too heavy for me to lift and I certainly did not want Butch lifting it so that was on my list for whoever showed up first. It was Jason and he picked it up and took it to its assigned place and he looked easy doing it. I bring it in each fall and have it watered a few times throughout the winter. It seems to work out for me and the cactus but I am assuming it won't always be that way and decisions will have to be made for its future at some point. 

Jason then helped Butch get his mower blades off so Butch could sharpen them so all in all, it was a very productive day for us.

Low Carb recipe website

I found a new website that I am enjoying immensely. Maybe you will too. Her recipes are tried and true and that is always a good thing. Today I will be making Strawberry Rhubarb Dump Cake.

All Day I Dream About Food.

https://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/ 

Grandsons of Leo and Keri

These are Leo and Keri's grandsons Jorgan, Brady and Beckett and someone, I know not who, bought these T-shirts for the boys and for those of us who know their Grandpa the shirts are quite appropriate.

Guy Wire or Guide Wire

Butch and I were having a casual conversation as I was working on a WordwithFriends game and I saw G-U-Y-Blank-I-Blank-Blank. So I asked Butch is it Guy wire or is it Guidewire? He said without hesitation Guy wire. Being the skeptic I am at times I decided to check it out and here is what I found. 

It is also known as a guyed wire, guy cable, guy strand, and guy anchors. People also (mistakenly) call it guidewire. The name guy wire is derived from the term guy: defined as a rope, cord, or cable used to steady, guide, or secure something. Guy wire is a tensioned cable that is both lightweight and strong.

Butch is sure that he had seen it in print and therefore knew it was Guy Wire.

Well, okay then. It still didn't work in the Word with Friends game. Keep that in mind my trivia friends as this could be a question used sometime in the future.

HWH Day plus old friends

Butch and I made our way to Moscow Iowa yesterday to have the leveling legs on the motorhome repaired. When we were ready to leave Texas we found our leveling legs, well one leveling leg, would not retract and we had to get help and use force to get it retracted so we could drive it. HWH in Moscow Iowa is the manufacturer of the leveling legs put on most RV's and when you choose to have them repair them you are looking at the Top Dog in the business. For anyone else, it will be a guessing game but HWH put it together so for them it is easy to know where and what to look for as the problem and they have all the means at their disposal to fix it.

HWH and Moscow Iowa are 200 miles east of us. So we got up early to head that way because we also wanted to work in a socially distanced visit with our long-time friends Bill and Kay Stilson in Walcott Iowa a mere 14 miles from Moscow. 

We knew there was a big old weather system between us and eastern Iowa and we did run into at about Ames and out of it again at Tama. Rain is not something we like to travel in. Tolerable if it is light rain, a challenge if it is medium rain, and horrible if it is a deluge. It was a medium rain. Butch is an excellent driver and it is never more apparent than when it is raining. He handled it very well. Me, not so much. I am stiff and sore today and only because medium rain makes me tense.

We arrived at HWH earlier than our appointment time and they got our RV in right away and fixed it easily and on our bill, in more than one place it had an amount and then it said it was a "goodwill" charge of $0.00. We were pleasantly surprised and our total bill was $99. We had expected it to be several hundred. I am sure it gets them a very good review every time! We had heard they do this but we were not expecting it. After all, our RV is 16 years old! Yeah, I know it shocks us too!

After we finished up with HWH we went to see our friends Bill and Kay. It was so good to see them again

The last time we had seen them was last summer when we went for our cruise on the Mississippi. It used to be when we were in Magnolia every winter we would see them several times a day. We have had many memorable moments and many adventures with those two and they are the very best of good people.

Kay was not happy with her hair as she is long overdue for a haircut but many people are in that same boat these days. I think they look great and I knew many of our mutual friends would enjoy the picture too.

Our return trip involved more medium rain but we did run out of it again and finished our trip with partly sunny skies.

For your entertainment

Keri sent me this video because Butch is such a squirrel warrior and she knew he would get a kick out of it. Butch's comment after watching it is "So I guess I should just give up." 

It is long so I am buying time while I write the latest edition of our wonderous adventures.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFZFjoX2cGg

Enjoy

Doing Fine

It is amazing how busy we can be when we have nothing to do! We are being hindered by weather or we would be even busier. We are now settled in or at least as much as we can be. Today we are getting ready to take the motorhome to Moscow Iowa tomorrow to get the leveling legs repaired. We will be heading out bright and early in the morning. 

 Keri and I were able to get our first walk of the season done on the bike trail. We have a two + mile routine whereby we go to the 1-mile marker on the trail and then return. This is the same routine I did for a few years with my friend Colleen who now lives fulltime in Florida. It felt wonderful to get out there and move right along.

Another first is that we went to the Mexican restaurant for the first time since Covid-19. They are open for business with restrictions. They were not busy with sit-down diners but still extremely busy with take-outs. They all wore masks and we did too except while eating. It was a real treat and at least for us it was the first time we had eaten out since my birthday on March 6th when we ate at Dirty Al's in McAllen Texas. Butch broke his leg the next day so there was a double reason we didn't eat out. By the time he was released from the hospital the entire country was in lockdown. We hadn't eaten out much anyway but you know how it is when you cannot do something. Sometimes and I stress sometimes you want to even more. I am not one of those people really but it was nice eating out last night.

Butch is taking off without his cane more frequently these days and he is now preferring the single-legged cane over the 4 pronged one.  So this is progress. He still looks a bit like Grandpa McCoy on occasion but he attributes that to lack of confidence and it is happening less all the time.

Today is our day 14 of being at home in Iowa. We will now be adjusting to dealing with the outside world. There are still way too many people who either do not know what 6 ft apart looks like or are simply unwilling to take care. Very frustrating. I don't know what it is currently like in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas but when we left it was much, much better than what we have observed in Iowa. The belligerence adds another level of frustration and we detect that far too often for comfort. It manifests itself with eye-rolls upon seeing our masks along with smirks added to a refusal to give us enough space. It is mild aggression so far but disheartening to witness.

Butch has started his war with the squirrels. Life would not be the same without this bit.

 Till next time...

Speaking of recipes

65 Memorial Day Recipes

I ran across this site today and looked it through. https://www.countryliving.com/food-drinks/g3290/memorial-day-recipes/?slide=65

I found two I wanted to keep and I have placed them below.

This one appealed to me because I love horseradish!

Grilled Horseradish Slaw

Memorial Day recipe

INGREDIENTS

2 tbsp. white wine vinegar 

2 tbsp. prepared horseradish, squeezed of excess moisture

1 tbsp. olive oil

1 tsp. Dijon mustard

1/2 tsp. caraway seeds

Kosher salt and black pepper

1/2 small red cabbage, cut into 4 wedges, leaving the core intact

DIRECTIONS

Whisk together white wine vinegar, horseradish, olive oil, Dijon mustard, caraway seeds,

and salt and black pepper in a bowl. Heat grill to medium-high. Brush red cabbage

with 1 Tbsp. olive oil. Grill, turning once, until charred and beginning to soften, 3 to 5 minutes.

Transfer to a cutting board and coarsely chop (discarding the core); toss with dressing.

And this one is not Keto friendly but it sounded like something I would like.

Memorial day recipe

Charred Corn Salad

INGREDIENTS

1/2 small red onion, finely chopped

1 red chili, seeded and chopped

1/4 c. fresh lime juice

1 tbsp. olive oil

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

6 ears fresh corn, shucked

3/4 c. fresh cilantro, chopped

4 oz. queso fresco, crumbled (about 1 cup)

DIRECTIONS

Heat grill to medium. Toss together red onion, chili, lime juice, and oil in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper. 

Grill corn, turning occasionally, until charred, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool, then cut corn from cobs. Add to onion mixture and toss to combine. Fold in cilantro and queso fresco.

LOADED CAULIFLOWER MOCK POTATO SALAD

Some people get a chuckle out of the fact I now and then put a recipe on here and others tell me how much they like it.

LOADED CAULIFLOWER MOCK POTATO SALAD

 2 lb. cauliflower cut into smallish same-sized pieces (see notes)
 6 hard-boiled eggs, cooled and chopped
 6-8 slices of bacon, cut into short strips and then fried crisp
 1 cup grated sharp cheddar (white or yellow cheddar will work; we used some of each)
 1/2 cup sliced green onion (mostly green parts)
 1/2 tsp. onion powder
 salt and fresh-ground black pepper to taste
 1 cup mayo
 2 tsp. yellow mustard (not Dijon)
 1 tsp. onion powder
 salt and fresh-ground black pepper to taste
Cut up cauliflower into smallish same-sized pieces and steam 5-6 minutes in a
vegetable steamer or in a pan with a
steamer insert. Test a piece after 5 minutes; you want the cauliflower fairly soft to resemble the texture of potatoes.
Drain the cauliflower into a colander placed in the sink and let it cool while you prep other ingredients. Don’t rinse; you want it to continue cooking a little.
When you’re ready to assemble the salad the cauliflower should be quite dry. If it isn’t, spread it out on paper towels placed on the counter and pat dry.
While the cauliflower cooks and then drains, cut bacon strips in short cross-wise strips and cook until the bacon is very crisp; then drain on paper towels.
Make
. (click that link to see the method I used, or use your favorite method.) Chop eggs coarsely.
Slice the green onion. Get one cup of grated sharp cheddar ready.
Whisk together the mayo, yellow mustard, 1 tsp. onion powder, salt, and fresh-ground black pepper to make the dressing.
When you’re ready to assemble the salad, put the well-drained (or blotted dry) cauliflower into a bowl and top with the chopped eggs.
Season well with salt, fresh-ground black pepper, and 1/2 tsp. onion powder; then add the dressing and gently combine with the cauliflower and eggs.
Add the crisp bacon pieces, sharp cheddar, and green onion and stir (gently) until the salad is well combined. (We saved out a little bacon, green onion, and cheese to garnish the top of the salad!)
You can eat right away or let the salad chill for a few hours.
Leftovers will keep well in the fridge overnight and can be eaten the next day, although you probably won’t have much left over. I’m guessing it might keep up to two days, but I’ve only kept it overnight.
We started with a 2-lb. bag of cut-up cauliflower and trimmed off some of the stem parts.

Weather!%$^&

Weather!
Whether the weather is cold,
Whether the weather is hot,
We'll weather the weather,
Whatever the weather,
Whether we like it or not!

No, I didn't write it but it is one I have repeated for years and it could not be more appropriate. I am almost thinking that triple-digit heat isn't as bad as daily gloom. It is either raining or threatening rain and even if it isn't raining it is cloudy. If and when the sun comes out it never lasts for more than an hour.
Yesterday Butch and I went for a tour around some of our favorite haunts in Greene County Iowa. I took a few photos.

Spring Lake and yes, it was crowded.

The Twin Shoppe is open for business. It is Butch's favorite place for ice cream.

 This is a neighborhood cat laying claim to our tree. We are on speaking terms but not petting terms just yet. He had better leave the birds alone or it could get ugly. So far, so good!

Normal for now

I think we have reached the 'normal for now' mark because really do any of us know what the new normal will shake out to be?  We, seniors, are lucky. At our age, we have either learned how to roll with the punches or we are planted in the cemetery. If we do happen to get Covid-19 they predicted that our age group would be hit the hardest and in some ways that has been true. As for me and mine, we have done our best to obey the rules as they have been requested and it has not been much of a hardship. We will continue to take care and live on hope and hamburger.

We have been in our summer home for a week as of today. So far, so good. We have seen one of our friends, Mickey, from a distance. We happened to be going by her house and she was outdoors so we pulled into her driveway for a 6 foot+ visit. Sure was good to see her.

I told Butch I was ready to take a drive around the county and take some Spring type photos. The only thing missing is the sun! Cloudy day pictures are not that much fun to take or to look at.

The bird feeders are filled and the war of the squirrels has resumed. Butch now has to rely on stealth instead of speed. He shot off the BB gun in the air and they indeed remembered what that meant.

Butch is giving up the cane entirely for short trips. He says it doesn't feel totally comfortable but it is way more than he was doing 3 weeks ago so we are happy with it. The pain has abated and he should be ready to resume therapy. We are waiting for our 14-day isolation to end before we schedule much. 7 more days to go. We have an appointment in Moscow Iowa for the leveling legs on the motorhome on May 28th.  Therapy will be back on the list when we return from that, followed by getting our 2nd shingle shot and seeing some of our friends from a distance. In June we have appointments with the plastic surgeon for a dermatology exam and eye doctor for exams, not on the same day.

Till next time...

Done

Motorhome mattress turned, bedding washed and put back together, refrigerator washed thoroughly and set to air out so no moisture tarry's long, Yesterday and today caught up on laundry.
I did get credit card activated a couple of days ago when I happened to get hold of the woman who knew how to do it. Took less than a minute.

And Butch is back on his lawnmower!

His indoor cane.

His outdoor cane is on that mower somewhere...

Fairly Done Deal

Well, I did it! All the trips have been made except for an odd or end now and again. Yup, it is all in the house and it looks chaotic here. It will all get sorted out in time. Getting things organized, doing laundry and a good cleaning of the motorhome is all on my todo list. Better yet, is that the weather will not interfere. Forgot to mention the outdoor stuff. I even forgot to think about until this very second. Hmmm
I was so tired last night that I learned from others that there were storms. I didn't hear them. I do like a whizbanger of a thunderstorm now and then. It clears the air. Maybe next time!

Yesterday

It was Friday and I took somewhat of a break. Actually, I went through the mail and that brought up all kinds of details to tend to, like sending in a request for an absentee ballot, pay by mail the licensed vehicle-renewal, call Discover card because I could not activate my card renewal because I had forgotten to change my phone number associated with it last fall and other things I cannot remember at the moment. That credit card thing is still not resolved! It was a mildly frustrating day. In all my years I have had much worse. This one was merely niggling.

Plan for the day it to get back to the transition of moving. It will be fairly easy. The worst of it is always the kitchen. The remainder is not as pressing.

Later...

Home again, Home again, Jiggity Jig

Since it wasn't raining we decided to start the transition from living in the motorhome to living in the house. It was so much easier when we were full-timers. We would pull into a site and be completely settled in within 30 minutes. Now it is at least two days of hard work. By hard work, I mean finding a place for all things like groceries, clothing, and tools. I have many things duplicated but then the memory of what is and isn't duplicated comes into play. The easiest solution is to be a full-timer!

Butch is feeling fine. A bit frustrated that he cannot be more helpful but I must say he has carried a large part of the load for many years and this year it is on me. And I will brag on myself just a little. I am proud of myself in problem-solving. Yesterday I retrieved the lawn cart from the shed, cleaned it out, and loaded it up for the trip to the house with things from the motorhome. It isn't all that far but it lessened the need for strength and cut way down on the number of trips. So the kitchen stuff is done and the clothes are next.

Ordinarily, I would have called in the troops for help but Covid-19 squashed that plan but ever looking on the bright side we got 'er done!

Leo and Keri did bring us supper from Casa de Oro, our favorite Mexican restaurant. Butch and I have been looking forward to a meal from there for many miles. It was wonderful!

Till next time...

On the 4th and Final day of travel...

The rain continued off and on and being the drizzly sort it was merely a nuisance and only briefly a hazard. It was a 380-mile stretch only about 50 miles further than our usual days of moho travel. There is considerable construction on the east side of I-435 around Kansas City and after looking at the route this morning we would be better off going around the west side next time. It is only 6 miles further.
We stopped in Peculiar MO for a short visit with the Missouri kids, Gary and Susan, maintaining social distancing and wearing masks. Hopefully, it will not be too long until we can have a "real" visit.
So we're home now and we agreed it feels strange to be here after all we have been through the past 2 1/2 months. And it will take some time to get settled back in the house. The advice is to always take it slow but experience tells me how difficult it is to live in two places at the same time. Whatever you want or need is always in the wrong place until the changeover has been completed. On the plus side is that I love the view from the motorhome. It is a bit like living in a treehouse.

These photos were taken as I was seated at my computer.

.
And here are two photos of sunflowers taken in "Sunny" South Texas. There were acres and acres of them. A most pleasant surprise.